My blog provides alternative view on Kashmir dispute and politics of South Asia, especially India Pakistan relations. It aims to educate people that they can make informed judgements.

Friday, 26 January 2018

Kashmiri struggle and traitors, Dr Shabir Choudhry

Kashmiri struggle and
traitors, Dr Shabir Choudhry

03 January 2012

Traitor is someone who
knowingly and deliberately involves in actions that are detrimental to
interests of his/her nation, a tribe or a community. In other words, a traitor
commits acts of treason by betraying. This betrayal or treachery does not have
to be for the sake of monetary gains, as people do it for different reasons.
Some do it for money; others do it for ideological or religious reasons. Some
may do it for political gains and social status; and some may do it to take
revenge from some perceived injustice to his/her family or tribe or for being
let down.

In contemporary
history of Jammu and Kashmir Sheikh Abdullah was the first leader to be called
a ‘traitor’, fact, however, is that he was a great leader, and he pursued pro Kashmir
policies, which were not appreciated by rulers of Pakistan. He was a Kashmiri
leader and promoted pro Kashmir policies. He did not want Jammu and Kashmir to
become either part of Pakistan or India. He wanted Jammu and Kashmir to become
independent, detached from India and Pakistan that they can have separate
existence and promote their history and culture.

Rulers of Pakistan did
not want Jammu and Kashmir to become independent. Despite Standstill Agreement with
Kashmir they blocked food supply to Jammu and Kashmir and on 22 October 1947 managed
a naked tribal aggression against Kashmir and killed innocent people, raped
women and looted citizens of Kashmir.

The forces of Jammu
and Kashmir were unable to defend this aggression; and dream of Sheikh Abdullah
and the Maharajah of Jammu and Kashmir to remain independent was shattered.
Fearing capture of Srinagar– summer capital and the main city of the State, the
Maharaja fled to Jammu– the winter capital and requested India for help. India also
wanted Jammu and Kashmir to become part of India; and this naked aggression
provided India with an opportunity to gain accession of the State with India.

The Maharajah of Jammu
and Kashmir had no choice but to accede to India in order to seek military help
and save his state and citizens. This accession was provisional in nature and
had to be ratified by the people of Jammu and Kashmir; and to date we had no
opportunity to express our view on this matter.

Sheikh Abdullah, on this
occasion, decided to side with the Maharajah and people of Jammu and Kashmir;
and fought those who came to occupy his motherland. He was, no doubt, pro
independent and not pro India, but when he was insulted by Mohammed Ali Jinnah
fourth time in October 1947, he had made up his mind that he would not support
State’s accession to Pakistan. However, the situation imposed on him and on Kashmir
by Pakistan’s unprovoked attack, forced Sheikh Abdullah to support this
‘provisional accession’.

The Pakistani rulers
failed to capture Kashmir and held Sheikh Abdullah and India responsible for
this; and it was at that time they called Sheikh Abdullah a ‘traitor’; and many
people under propaganda of Pakistan viewed him in that light. However, the
situation changed when the same Sheikh Abdullah showed signs of rebellion and
was paving way for an independent Jammu and Kashmir, he was sent to jail by
India; and at that time Pakistani government forgetting what they called him in
past, promoted Sheikh Abdullah as a ‘Lion of Kashmir’.

The point to be
remembered here is that it was our Muslim brothers and neighbouring Pakistan
that attacked us on 22 October 1947 once we became independent after lapse of
the British Paramountcy on 15 October 1947; and it was the rulers of Pakistan
who gave a title of a ‘traitor’ to a towering Kashmiri leader of Jammu and
Kashmir. Furthermore, it was this attack that forcibly divided our country,
hence our miseries on both sides of the divided line since 1947.

Since that date our so
called ‘advocate’ and ‘liberators’ issued many fatwas (edicts) telling us who
is a ‘Kashmiri traitor’ and who is a ‘Kashmiri patriot’; and while doing this
‘great service’ to the people of Jammu and Kashmir they applied a simple
criterion: a Kashmiri who was loyal to Pakistan was a patriot; and those who
earnestly opposed accession to Pakistan were declared ‘anti Pakistan’ and
‘traitors’. This policy has not changed since that date.

With passage of time
Jammu and Kashmir became hunting ground for secret agencies of both India and
Pakistan where people were oppressed and intimidated for holding pro Kashmir
views; and some were labelled as ‘traitors’ by respective governments. Many
leaders and political activists of Jammu and Kashmir do not openly express
their views because of fear that they will be declared ‘anti Pakistan’ and
‘Indian agent’. It is ironic that those who work against interests of Jammu and
Kashmir and promote Pakistani interests are not considered traitors; if
anything, they proudly promote a Pakistani agenda and call themselves
‘patriots’.

In the past this task
of labelling ‘traitor’ or ‘agent’ was assigned to the secret agencies; but now
this task, by and large, has been taken over by people of Jammu and Kashmir and
especially people of Pakistani Administered Kashmir. Leaders and political
activists of the Valley can promote pro Pakistan policy or even division of
Jammu and Kashmir, and both of these positions are against genuine interests of
Jammu and Kashmir, yet they are considered patriots and no one from the Valley
call them ‘traitors’.

But if leaders and
political activists of Pakistani Administered Kashmir oppose accession to
India, oppose accession to Pakistan and promote united and independent Jammu
and Kashmir that caters for all its citizens irrespective of their religious or
ethnic background they are labelled as ‘traitors’ by Pakistani secret agencies,
and by some people with tunnel vision in Pakistani Administered Kashmir and in
the Indian Administered Kashmir.

This labelling of each
other as a ‘traitor’ and an ‘agent’ has made the task of dividing and governing
us easier for India and Pakistan; and weaken our struggle so much that despite
so many sacrifices there is no light at the end of tunnel. New Year has
started, and many have wished Happy New Year, but I cannot see any happiness
coming our way; if anything, I can see more trouble and misery descending on South
Asia.

Seeds of extremism,
communalism, hatred and violence sowed to destroy and unstable enemies of Pakistan
have torn the Pakistani society apart. Extremism, communalism and violence
which was, at one time, exported in holy name of Jihad has made Pakistan a
battleground for competing interests and militant groups, each calling the
other ‘Kaffir’ and in some cases enemy of Islam and Pakistan.

We Kashmiris protest
that Pakistan has stabbed our struggle for independence and have been
instrumental in division of our homeland that has brought misery and oppression
on both sides of the divide. But what can you expect from Pakistani rulers and
establishment? Those who have destroyed Jinnah’s Pakistan; and those who kill,
oppress and torture their own people cannot be expected to be nice to us.

In a country where
political culture is such that President, Prime Minister, Home Minister and the
Army Chief are accused of being ‘traitors’ and ‘agents’ of other countries and
working against integrity and sovereignty of the State; and where every leader
is perceived as corrupt and working against national interests what can you
expect from them? This political culture has filtered down to various parts of
divided Jammu and Kashmir; and people of Jammu and Kashmir have made task of
secret agencies of India and Pakistan easier because now we call each other
‘traitor’ and ‘agent’ of one country or the other.

This trend of
labelling each other with titles of a ‘traitor’ and an ‘agent’ has further
divided and weakened the people of Jammu and Kashmir; and people who are
divided are easy to control and oppress. If we are to make progress and achieve
our most cherished goal of independence, then we have to carefully analyse the
situation and see what went wrong. We are occupied by more than one country.
True, militarily we cannot fight them all, but we must not be promoting agenda
of those who occupy us; and say that one is an occupier and the other is not.

We must remember that Jammu
and Kashmiris a multi religious and multi ethnic State; and the Kashmir dispute
is not religious in nature. Kashmiri people on the Pakistani side of the divide
cannot practically and logically fight to liberate the people on the other side
of the divide; and they cannot come to liberate us or people of Gilgit
Baltistan. Whether we like it or not, the struggle has to be done by the local
people where they are occupied; and without fear of being called a ‘traitor’.

We can only be
traitors if we are working to divide the State of Jammu and Kashmir, either in
name of religion or some ideology. Our prime responsibility is to promote a
Kashmiri interest; and if that clashes with the perceived national interest of
those who occupy us then that should not be our problem. If we defend a
Kashmiri interest and promote united and independent Jammu and Kashmir then we
are Kashmiri patriots and not agents of any country; and those who view us like
that could well be agents of those who occupy us.

Writer is Director
Diplomatic Committee of Kashmir National Party, political analyst and author of
many books and booklets. Also, he is Director Institute of Kashmir Affairs.Email:drshabirchoudhry@gmail.com

About Me

Dr Shabir Choudhry has done extensive research on the issue of Kashmir and Indo Pakistan relations. He passed BA Honours in Politics and History, and Mphil in International Relations (title of the thesis, ‘Kashmir and Partition of India’); and title of his PhD thesis is ‘Kashmir- An issue of a nation not a dispute of a land’.

Apart from this Dr Shabir Choudhry passed Post Graduates Certificates in Education, and NVQ Assessor’s qualifications; and taught English in London.

Political Achievements

Founder member of JKLF (Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front established in 1977) and got elected as a Press Secretary in 1984.

Became its Secretary General in 1985, and resigned from this post in 1996.

Got elected President of JKLF and Europe in May 1999, and decided not to contest in elections of July 2001.

Said good - bye to the JKLF as it is in many groups and is largely seen as advancing a Pakistani agenda on Kashmir dispute, and set up a new party Kashmir National Party in May 2008.

.

At present, he is:

·Spokesman Kashmir National Party and Director Diplomatic Committee;

·Spokesman for International KashmirAlliance;

·Founder member and Director Institute of Kashmir Affairs;

Previously

·A founder Member and Trustee/ Director of London based registered charity, Kashmir Foundation International and resigned from this position in August 2001.

·Regularly take part in the Sessions of the UN Human Rights (Commission) now Council in Geneva; and address various conferences and seminars to oppose violence and highlight the Kashmir cause.

·Participated in a Round Table Conference on Kashmir, organised by Socialist Group of European Parliament in Brussels in 1993.

·Addressed as a Chief Guest in a seminar on issue of Mangla Dam during the UN Sub Commission’s proceedings in August 2003.

·Addressed as a key - note speaker in a seminar on the issue of Gilgit and Baltistan, organised by Association of British Kashmiris.

·Addressed as a keynote speaker on human rights conference in Paris in 1991.

·Addressed at CambridgeUniversity as a Chief Guest in a conference on Kashmir in 1990.

·Addressed as a keynote speaker at New Delhi conference on Kashmir, which was part of Track Two diplomacy in November 2000.

·In September 2008, addressed a Conference arranged by Interfaith International in Geneva, topic of which was:“Kashmir Issue, Terrorism and Human Rights”.

·Addressed as a speaker in a NGO Conference on Self - Determination in Geneva in August 2000.

·Addressed as a keynote speaker in a fringe meeting of Liberal Democrats at their Annual Conference in Brighton in 1995.

·Participated in World Human Rights Conference in Vienna in 1993.

·Before President Clinton's visit to India and Pakistan in 2000, lead a JKLF delegation to the State Department to discuss Kashmir dispute and situation in South Asia.

·Also had two rounds of meetings with senior State Department officials before President Musharraf’s meeting to Washington in June 2003.

·Apart from that had meetings with senior officials including Ministers of different countries, and also held many meetings with the State Department and Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials on number of occasions.

·Played important role in advancing a Kashmiri perspective on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir; and also helped Baroness Emma Nicholson with her report ‘Kashmir: present situation and future prospects’, which was adopted by the European Parliament in May 2007.

·Won first prize in an essay competition in Urdu in 1976. It was organised by High Commission of Pakistan in London, and title of the essay was 'Qaaid-e- Azam's role in Islamic History'.

·Apart from that have addressed conferences in Brussels, Geneva, Toronto, Islamabad, Delhi, and

Publications

·Got first Urdu novel ‘Fareena’ published at the age of eighteen.

·Second Urdu novel ‘Bay-Khataa’ which was about the problems of Asian youths living in UK published in 1983.

·Third Urdu book ‘Pakistan and Kashmiri struggle for independence’ published in 1990.

·Fourth Urdu book is also on Kashmiri struggle, 'Is an independent Kashmir a conspiracy?'

·Apart from that has twenty books and booklets published in English on various aspects of the Kashmiri struggle.

·Recent publications are: Kashmir dispute as I see it

·Different perspective on Kashmir

·JKLF visit to Pakistan Administered Kashmir

·Kashmir Needs Change of Heart

·If not self - determination then what?

·Emma Nicholson report- who has won?

·Struggle for independence, Jihad or proxy war (Introduction by Baroness Emma Nicholson)

·

Future publications

Following books were completed some time ago and shall be published in near future:

In Search of Freedom - My visit to Srinagar and Islamabad

Kashmir and Partition of India

A brief background

Dr Shabir Choudhry was born in a small village called Nakker Shimali (near Panjeri) in District Bhimber, Azad Kashmir. He went to UK in 1966, and like other people from the region, holds a dual nationality. He left secondary school in 1970 with no qualifications and began his life as a textile worker.

In 1975 he started part time studies and passed Matriculation from Government High School Panjeri, passed ‘O’ and ‘A’ levels from UK, and resumed full time degree course in 1981, and passed BA (Hons) in Politics and History in 1984.

He continued full time and part time jobs until he got his Mphil. He passed his PGCE (Post Graduates Certificate in Education) in 1990, and then started full time job as a Lecturer. Due to health problems he resigned from teaching in 1999. At present he is self - employed, provides private tuition, translation and interpretation and consultancy.

Through out his adult life he has actively worked for the cause of Kashmir, and even during long illness he effectively carried out his responsibilities as a leader of the JKLF, a ‘prolific writer’ and consistent campaigner of Rights Movement and peace in Jammu and Kashmir and South Asia.